Sale averaged 91.8 mph on his fastball Thursday, down significantly from the 94.5 mph he flashed in his first start off the injured list last Friday, Chris Cotillo of MassLive.com reports.
Neither Sale nor manager Alex Cora were overly concerned after the game. The pitcher was pleased he was able to fight through his diminished velo and make pitches when he had to, but he continues to face a restricted workload. The left-hander wasn't fully built up when he started last week and was pulled after 58 pitches. On Thursday, he got up to 65 pitches when Cora pulled him in the fifth inning after Sale issued a pair of walks.